AWARD NUMBER: W81XWH-14-1-0151

TITLE: Mississippi CaP HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Christian Gomez, Ph.D.

CONTRACTING ORGANIZATION: UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER JACKSON, MS 39216-4500

REPORT DATE: September 2016

TYPE OF REPORT: Annual

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1. REPORT DATESeptember 2016

2. REPORT TYPEAnnual

3. DATES COVERED15 August 2015 – 14 August 2016

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6. AUTHOR(S)Christian Gomez, Ph.D.

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14. ABSTRACTThe goal of the “Mississippi prostate cancer HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program” is to promote interest in careers in PCa research and care among undergraduate students from Tougaloo College (TC) and Jackson State University (JSU) at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC)-Cancer Institute (CI). During the summer of 2016, 2 undergraduate scholars from TC and JSU, gained experience in performing PCa research at UMMC-CI. This number added to trainees from Classes of 2014 and 2015 makes a total of 14 trainees for this training grant. Two (2) trainees are pursuing graduate studies in cancer biology; 2 trainees joined other higher education in Health Sciences related programs; 2 trainees are hired employees; 8 trainees are currently pursuing graduation; 14 meeting presentations in the poster or oral format included work related to internships; trainees received numerous (7) awards; manuscripts (4) in preparation include trainees as coauthors; and 1 PCa Research Mini Symposiums have been organized. Research projects are leading to development of novel effective treatments and addressing mechanisms of resistance for men with high-risk or metastatic PCa. Likewise, these projects will eventually help distinguishing aggressive from indolent disease in men newly diagnosed with PCa. Scholars of this Program are becoming well-rounded, trained professionals with interest in PCa research and healthcare.

15. SUBJECT TERMSUMMC-HBCU, Prostate Cancer, Training Grant, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Cancer Institute, Tougaloo College, Jackson State University, CDMRP, PCRP, research, care

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Table of Contents

Page 1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………… 1

2. Keywords……………………………………………………………………… 2

3. Accomplishments………..…………………………………………................. 3

4. Impact…………………………...…………………………………………….. 13

5. Changes/Problems...….……………………………………………………….. 14

6. Products…………………………………….……….….……………………... 14

7. Appendices……………………………………………………………………. 16

Annual Summary

1. Introduction

Mississippi has the second highest rate of PCa death in the country and the fourth highest incidence rate. Factors such as increased risk for African-Americans, obesity and medical distrust contribute to high rates of PCa in Mississippi. The scarcity of minority physicians and scientists is a major factor in perpetuating distrust in medicine and science among minority communities. Because of these reasons the scope of our program is to increase the number of HBCU scientists and physicians who are trained as PCa researchers. The subject is to train undergraduate students from two Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tougaloo College (TC) and Jackson State University (JSU), so they can gain experience in performing prostate cancer (PCa) research at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) Cancer Institute (CI). Participants will participate in a 10-week comprehensive training program in PCa research and care. Interns will perform hands on PCa research, attend regular hosting lab meetings, weekly one-on-one meetings with their mentors, attend UMMC-CI’s weekly seminar series, participate in a lecture program including PCa-related lectures, shadow a physician to expose them to experiences related to PCa clinical practice, participate in a PCa Research Symposium, attend seminar series about the research programs at UMMC, postgraduate studies alternatives, graduate school application process, and will be provided opportunities in social settings to improve their networking and communication skills. Interns will also prepare a final written report. Diverse ways of tracking interns will be utilized in order to contact them, update their biographical and training information, as well as their accomplishments, awards, interest and achievements related to their approach to academic career (i.e., enter graduate school, medical school or other related health-related professions contributing to PCa research and care). Our ultimate purpose is to create a long-term partnership between TC, JSU and UMMC-CI that will produce a cadre of top-caliber minority scientists and physicians with a specific interest in PCa research, prevention, diagnosis and care.

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2. Keywords

UMMC-HBCU, Prostate Cancer, Training Grant, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Cancer Institute, Tougaloo College, Jackson State University, CDMRP, PCRP, research, care, aggressive, indolent, disease, newly diagnosed.

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3. Accomplishments

Major goals of the project [as stated in the approved Statement of Work (SOW)]:

Specific Aim 1: To, during a 2-year period, recruit 6 undergraduate trainees per year from TC and JSU.

Specific Aim 2: To provide the mentees a comprehensive training curriculum in PCa research at UMMC-CI.

Specific Aim 3: To track and coach trainees on their progress towards become biomedical Prostate Cancer researchers

What was accomplished under these goals: Upon completion of the second year of the project (8/2015 – 8/2016), we have trained 14 undergraduate students from TC and JSU. There were no technical or unexpected difficulties encountered and/or any deviations from the original SOW. Per Instruction, our training and research accomplishments following each task outlined in the approved SOW are listed as follows:

Specific Aim 1: To, during a 2-year period, recruit 6 undergraduate trainees per year from TC and JSU. Year 1, months 1-3; Year 2, months 13-15 (completed)

Selection process: The applicant pool included all sophomores and juniors enrolled in a Major in the life sciences (biology, biochemistry, chemistry, biotechnology, etc.) at TC or JSU. We also included in the selection pool seniors based on their commitment to go to Graduate School (applying or accepted in a graduate program at the time of application to our program). Our strategy of advertisement included online advertisement in the research-related section and Summer Internships and Outreach Programs in the HBCUs, UMMC-CI, UMMC-discovery U Program, and UMMC-School of Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences webpages. We also developed a webpage (http://www.umc.edu/researchtraining/). This resource has continued been particularly successful since includes information about eligibility requirements, program components, summer research internship, housing assistance, application packet, and contact information, list of mentors, and news (Appendix #1). In addition, Flyers were placed in the two colleges and at the host institution (Appendix #2). The selection process was initiated 60 days prior to the beginning of the summer training course.

The following tables refer to some demographics aspects related to the applicant pool for the class of 2016 which included 2 students selected (1 from JSU and 1 from TC). This surpasses our goal of training 12 students. Total of trainees are now 14. Follows demographics for Class of 2016:

Applicant numbers 2016 JSU 7 TC 4 Gender (overall) Female 9 Male 2

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Gender (TC) 2016 Female 2 Male 2 Gender (JSU) Female 7 Male 0

It is also worth noting that independent of the school, and as noted in our previous report, females leaded the number of applicants to our program. Overall, females represented 81.8% of the pool of applicants to class of 2016. Males represented 18.2% of the pool of applicants to class of 2016. The distribution was similar at the level of individual schools (note tables above). As we progress on the development of our program, we continue our efforts to promote inclusion of males in our program.

A question related to the academic status of applicants applying to our program is of great importance to assess the nature of the pool and its distinct component when analyzing per school.

The following tables represent the average GPA for the whole pool as well as per each individual school:

GPA (average) 2016 TC 3.45 JSU 3.64

GPA (TC) 2016 Average 3.45 Standard deviation 0.41 Median 3.42

GPA (JSU) 2016 Average 3.62 Standard deviation 0.26 Median 3.64

From the GPA results, a good representation of academic performance, we can propose that the application pool remains homogeneous (compared to our previous report) between schools. This statement however, needs further validation since the standards between schools for evaluation have not been normalized at the present.

Following the selection process, 2 trainees were selected for the Class of 2016. Individual digitalized application packages and a well-defined set of scoring criteria was distributed to a set of five raters. Those included PI, member of Program Advisory Board, a research mentor, HBCU faculty advisors, and Program Coordinator. Applicants were ranked by highest to lowest based on the GPA, Personal statement and Letters of reference.

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Follows the list of applicants selected for the Class of 2016:

Name School Classification Major GPA Courtney Mangum TC Junior Biology 3.77 Ornella Amoah JSU Sophomore Chemistry 3.79

Match the student fellows with their research mentors at UMMC-CI. Year 1, months 4-5; Year 2, months 16-17 (completed for Years 1 and 2)

As planned, trainees were matched to mentors based on the mentee’s research interests and following an interview between the mentee and potential mentor. Mentor assignations were completed 30 days prior to the initiation of the summer program. Use of the web-based resource (http://www.umc.edu/researchtraining/) allowed mentees to identify mentors based on research interests. Typically, the trainees selected three mentors and ranked them by order of preference. Interviews followed (including the presence of the Program Director) and a decision about the selected mentor was taken consulting the option of the mentee and prospective mentors.

Specific Aim 2: To provide the mentees a comprehensive training curriculum in Prostate Cancer research at UMMC-CI (completed)

Summer course:

The trainees participated in a 10-week comprehensive training program in PCa research and care. As outlined (Appendix #3), the Course Program was completed as anticipated.

The following description refers to landmarks achieved during the Summer Training Course:

PCa-specific lecture program: Included lectures were focused on Basic Cancer Biology; Cancer Pathology Pharmacology; Clinical science; Population Science; and Careers in PCa Research and Care.

Summer research project: The mentees were associated to a primary mentor. They developed their research project under direct supervision of a graduate student or postdoc.

The following table resumes mentors and mentees for the Classes of 2016:

Mentee School Mentor Project Tittle Class of 2016 Courtney Mangum TC Keli Xu Identifying Progression of Aggressive

Prostate Cancer Originating from Lunatic Fringe/Notch-Regulated Mice Models

Ornella Amoah JSU Christian Gomez Effects of Hypoxia on the Aggressiveness of PCa

Students attended regular hosting lab meetings, and met weekly with their mentors. These one-on-one meetings were highly valuable to discuss the progress of the research projects. For the

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inaugural course, once a week, the students visited another lab involved in PCa research; in these occasions they interacted with other PIs and lab personnel. It was intended that this activity would give the students a broader vision of the PCa research done at the Cancer Institute.

The following picture shows aspects of the wet lab centric summer research program:

 

The Summer Training Program is centered on a mentored hands-on a research intensive project (Courtney Mangum with her mentor Dr. Keli Xu, Ph.D. on the left and Ornella Amoah

with the graduate student Nasir Butt, M.D.)

Shadowing: To expose mentees to experiences related to PCa clinical practice, they shadowed clinicians. See Appendix #3 for list of clinical mentors involved in the shadowing activities. This activity, occurred once a week (between weeks 4-6) and included touring to Urology, Hematology-Oncology, and Radiation Oncology facilities. Shadowing exposed the mentees to the challenges related to research and care of PCa patients.

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Scenarios for multi-disciplinary patient assessment were presented to students

(Mentees attend a tumor teleconference focused on Vice-President Biden

“Cancer Moonshot Initiative”)

End of the Summer 2016 PCa Research Symposium: This activity has become a keystone of our program. The program has attracted the attention of the UMMC community at large, along with that from local academic institutions. Forty four (44) attendants registered for the conference (Appendix #4: Sign-up sheet for 2016 PCa Research mini-Symposium). Speakers (Appendix #5; Program for the 2016 Research Conference) (10), included: Srinivasan Vijayakumar, Director of UMMC-Cancer Institute, Professor and Chairman, Department of Radiation Oncology University of Mississippi Medical Center, "Precision Medicine and Its Role in Overcoming Disparities in Health Care in Mississippi"; Keli Xu, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Neurobiology and Anatomical Sciences, member of the Cancer Institute at University of Mississippi Medical Center, "Potential Roles of Lunatic Fringe and Notch in Aggressive Prostate Cancer"; Timothy Turner, Ph.D., Professor and Chairman Department of Biology, Jackson State University, “Targeted Treatment of Prostate Cancer”; Nasir Butt, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Pathology, UMMC, “Novel Therapeutic Strategy using Dietary Bioactive Compound for Prostate Cancer”; Marcelo Sakiyama, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Pathology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, “MHC Class I Polypeptide-Related Sequence A (MICA) as a Factor of Aggressive Prostate Cancer”. Diva Whalen, B.S., Graduate Student, Meharry Medical College, UMMC – HBCU: Prostate Cancer Research Training Program Class of 2014, “The Next Step: Success After the Program”; Jinghe Mao, Ph.D., Professor of Biology, Tougaloo College, “Undergraduate Training for Biomedical Research at Tougaloo College”; and the two trainees of the UMMC-HBCU 2016 PCa Training Program: Ornella Amoah, JSU, “Effects of Hypoxia on the Aggressiveness of Prostate Cancer”; Courtney Mangum, TC, “Identifying Progression of Aggressive Prostate Cancer Originating from

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Lunatic Fringe/Notch-Regulated Mice Models”. The Research Mini Symposium represents a venue for the trainees to present their research project, increase their knowledge about the different research aspects of PCa, and engage themselves in productive networking activities with seasoned PCa researchers, academic leader and PCa community advocates, among others as is exhibited in Appendix #6. 

Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE): To maximize the mentees’ summer experience, our Program has been integrated with the SURE program. This initiative oversees and promotes undergraduate outreach summer activities in biomedical research through the UMMC School of Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences. Mentees from our program interacted with top students from around the state and the country, attended to weekly seminar series (Appendix #7: SURE program for 2016). Students learned about the research programs at UMMC, postgraduate studies alternatives, and graduate school application process. They also were provided numerous opportunities in social settings to improve their networking and communication skills (Appendix #7: SURE social activities program). They presented their research projects in the oral and poster format (Appendix #8: Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium, 2016. Highlighted in the program are our students’ names).

The following picture depict mentees engaged in activities of the SURE:

 

 

 

 

 

 The Summer Undergraduate Research Experience allowed our trainees to interact with top

students from around the state and the country and learn about graduate school opportunities.

(Courtney Mangum -on the left- and Ornella Amoah -on the right- at the Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium)

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What opportunities for training and professional development did the project provide?

Preparation of reportable products (i.e., scientific abstracts and manuscripts) based on the trainees’ research:

Trainees have worked and continue working in close contact with their mentors in summarizing their findings. Final report: At the end of the Summer Training Course mentees prepared a final report (Appendix #9). The 1-page document was structured as a scientific conference abstract. Early on, mentors and mentees were instructed to refer to a very specific format for elaboration of the document. Format requirements included extension (1-page), document type (Word file), Font (Times New Roman), Font size (12 points), Space (single), Margins (1.25”). Structure was also specified (Title, Authors, Affiliations, Body: Including introduction, main objective or hypothesis, materials and methods, main results, discussion and future directions), and Funding sources: (i.e., grant/s from PI, DoD: W81XWH-14-1-0151).

Student presentations: Class 2016 interns presented their research in the poster and/or oral format. So far 7 (seven) meeting presentations in the poster or oral format included work related to our 2 trainees. Trainees presented their work in local meetings, at 2016 UMMC PCa Research Mini Symposiums (Appendixes #5 and #6), 2016 Summer Undergraduate Research Symposiums (Appendix #7), and TC Research Day (Appendix #10). Manuscripts in preparation (4): Anthony Keyes, the process of writing a publication from the work he did during the summer of 2016 (Class of 2014). Joshua Agee (Class of 2014) and Timera Brown (Class of 2015) will be coauthors in a manuscript from Drs. Mao and Zhou (mentors). Angel Garcia (Class of 2015) will be coauthor in an article from Dr. Gomez (PI) lab. Adesuwa Ekunwe (Class of 2015) is actively working with Dr. Anait Levenson in the preparation of a manuscript including her as coauthor. In recognition of the relevance of publications for the success of this program, the leadership continue actively engaging mentors and mentees in the preparation of manuscripts. For this purpose, active mentee-mentor communication modalities have implemented. To stimulate students’ continued work, they will offered part time opportunities in the host laboratories at UMMC. To formalize this process, they will be offered an academic credit-conducing Independent Study Course co-mentored by the research mentor at UMMC-CI and the faculty advisor at the HBCU. This extended mentoring mechanism has been implemented and is offered to the students.

Specific Aim 3: To track and coach trainees on their progress towards become biomedical Prostate Cancer researchers

There are different modalities to track trainees and support them. Some of them are based at the HBCUs and others are based at UMMC. The mentors and mentees maintain periodical communication. Additional constant communication occurs between Undergraduate Faculty Advisors at HBCU and mentees for evaluating academic performance and willingness to pursue

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graduate studies. As indicated above, the Program Director has worked closely with mentors and HBCU advisors to work on modalities to sustain communication with the mentees and achievement of program success indicators. Faculty advisors at the HBCUs have worked with the trainees in promoting their academic progress preparing them for graduate school.

To exemplify our progress on supporting our fourteen (14) trainees in their path to pursuing PCa careers we exhibit some relevant landmarks:

Our Trainees have received numerous (7) awards. Class of 2014- Anthony Keyes: Poster presentation award at ABRCMS 2015 in Seattle, WA; Research Experience for Undergraduates Summer Program at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Summer 2015);  2016 iREU (international Research Experiences for Undergraduates) at University of Bordeaux, France. Class of 2015- Angel Garcia: NSD Research Symposium 2015 poster presentation award and second place poster award at Mississippi College Undergraduate Research Symposium, Tougaloo College; iSEED Summer Research Experience at the University at Buffalo. Jamal Keyes: 2016 Summer Research experience for undergraduates, RISE (Research in Science and Engineering) at Rutgers. Timera Brown: 2016 Research experience for undergraduates at Vanderbilt Institute for Nanoscale Science and Engineering. (Appendix #11: Trainees Awards)

Two (2) trainees are pursuing graduate studies in cancer biology: Diva Whalen (Class of 2014) finished her first year at Meharry Medical College to attain a Ph.D. Charles Phillips (Class of 2015) was accepted at the School of Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences, Graduate Program in Pathology, UMMC to attain a Ph.D. (Appendix #12)

Two (2) trainees joined other higher education in Health Sciences related programs: Ansley Scoot (Class of 2014) was accepted at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine (Appendix #13). Tatyana Givens (Class of 2014) was accepted into Mercer’s Doctor of Pharmacy Class of 2020 at Mercer University (Appendix #14).

Attendance and presentation at Scientific Meetings (14): Class of 2014- Anthony Keyes poster presentation at ABRCMS 2015 in Seattle, WA. Diva Whalen, invited speaker at 2016 Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium, UMMC. Class of 2015- Angel Garcia: Poster presentation at 2015 14th Research Symposium of Students’ Summer Research Series and 2016 Mississippi College Undergraduate Research Symposium at Tougaloo College; 2016 Emerging Researchers National (ERN) Conference in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Washington, D.C. Adesuwa Ekunwe: Poster presentation at ABRCMS 2015, Seattle, WA. Charles Phillips: poster presentation at 2015 TC 14th Research Symposium of Students’ Summer Research Series. Timera Brown: oral presentation at 2015 TC 14th Research Symposium of Students’ Summer Research Series. Class of 2016- Courtney Mangum: oral presentation at 2016 Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium at UMMC; poster and oral presentation at 2016 Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium at UMMC. Ornella Amoah: oral presentation at 2016 Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium at UMMC; poster and oral presentation at 2016 Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium at UMMC. (Appendixes #5, #10, #11 and #15)

Diverse modalities for trainees tracking have been implemented. They have been used to prepare this Annual report:

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Trainees’ database: We implemented a database to register trainee’s contact, biographical and training information, accomplishments such as fellowships, awards, employment, education, publications, funding received, and poster and oral presentations at scientific conferences, etc. Recently, an electronic Redcap-based survey helps us to compile information for population and update of our database. This work is diligently performed by Mr. Marcelo Sakiyama, program assistant. Our most recent summary update based on the information archived in the database refers to the academic progress of trainees: 14 undergraduate scholars from TC and JSU, gained experience in performing PCa research at UMMC-CI. Two (2) trainees are pursuing graduate studies in cancer biology. Diva Whalen (Class of 2014) is entering her second year at Meharry Medical College to attain a Ph.D. degree. Charles Phillips (Class of 2015) joined the School of Graduate Studies in Health Sciences, Department of Pathology, at UMMC. Two (2) trainees joined other higher education in Health Sciences related programs: Ansley Scoot (Class of 2014) was accepted at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine and Tatyana Givens (Class of 2014) was accepted into Mercer’s Doctor of Pharmacy at Mercer University. Two (2) trainees are hired employees: Joshua Agee is a researcher coordinator at Open Arms Healthcare Center, UMMC. Brittany Martin is working as an optician at Wallace Optometry Associates and plans to attend The University of Alabama Birmingham School of Optometry in the Fall of 2017. Eight (8) trainees are currently pursuing graduation: Class of 2014: Anthony Keyes, senior in Chemistry and Mathematics at JSU. Class of 2015: Adesuwa Ekunwe, is a Rising Junior in Chemistry at JSU. Angel Garcia, is a Rising Senior in Biology at TC. Deion Phillips, is a Rising Senior in Biology at JSU. Jamal Keyes, is a Rising Junior in Chemistry at JSU. Timera Brown, is a Rising Junior in Biology at TC. Class of 2016: Courtney Mangum, is a senior biology major at TC, Vice-President of the National Pre-Alumni Council of the United Negro Fund. Ornella Amoah is a junior Chemistry major at The JSU, NOBCChE JSU student chapter secretary and the ACS JSU chapter vice president. The Program Director, in conjunction with the faculty advisors, and assisted by Mr. Sakiyama maintains and updates the database of all information collected. How were the results disseminated to communities of interest? As dissemination modalities we used Facebook and LinkedIn. Those resources have been used by our trainees as means to obtain continuous tracking, promote engagement, interaction and professional networking, help professional work’s dissemination, and develop professional presence. Social media additionally, has been used as a tool to educate the public about trainees’ experience in the Program and as a way to increase public awareness of PCa research performed by minorities. The following pictures exemplify use of social media as means of mentee tracking and program dissemination:

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Trainees are instructed to develop their professional social profile (Jamal Keyes - Class of 2015- most current LinkedIn update. 09/28/2016)

Social media allows outreach and Program dissemination (Speakers, 2016 PCa Research Symposium in the UMMC-Cancer Institute

Facebook group page)

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Plans to accomplish the proposed goals: With focus on the next report, Program leadership is focused on the following aspects:

Continuous mentee-mentor interaction. For this purpose trainees are currently beingoffered the academic credit-conducing Independent Study Course co-mentored by theresearch mentor at UMMC-CI and the faculty advisor at the HBCU.

Meeting presentations. Our goal will be to support trainees on the submission of abstractsto local and national meetings.

Manuscripts. As indicated, at least publications may have mentees as coauthors. Theleadership team will make special emphasis on the achievement of this goal.

Application to graduate school programs. So far, student from the inaugural Class, and onefrom the Class of 2015 were accepted to graduate school programs with emphasis in cancerbiology and pathology. Other 2 (Class of 2014) are in higher education in health sciencesrelated programs. Many of the trainees remaining as undergraduates will be in position toapply to graduate programs during this academic year. We are closely working with themon their application process.

4. IMPACT

Development of the principal discipline(s) of the project: Since UMMC-CI faculty members are engaged in a variety of research projects, trainees have had the opportunity to be trained in different areas of PCa research. Particularly the trainees have been involved in mechanisms of tumorigenesis. The results generated will allow advancement on new therapeutic strategies for men with aggressive disease. Since our researchers also have interest in Biomarker development and validation, projects will help to distinguish aggressive from indolent disease in men newly diagnosed with PCa.

One of the most relevant aspects is the training of our students in relation to achieve superior level so of PCa knowledge. In 2016, a questionnaire was applied to specifically assessment of proposed goals. An unannounced pre (before first lecture) - vs. post (after the last lecture)-evaluation test evaluated the impact of the lectures program on the trainees’ knowledge about PCa. Overall, see Appendix #16 for test results, the students exhibited a doubling of their knowledge score (average pre-training score was 30.5% correct; average post-training score was 67.5% correct). Despite the small number of questions and students, one can draw a few clear observations. Before the class, none of the students had any knowledge of FDA-approved PCa biomarkers. By the time the training ended, every student knew the correct answer. Tests such as this objectively demonstrate the achievements of our training program.

Other disciplines: Another area of interest the work the trainees is relevant for development of effective treatments and address of mechanisms of resistance for men with high-risk or metastatic PCa.

Technology transfer: It has been a tremendous impact of this project in allowing resource sharing between the UMMC campus and the HBCUs. UMMC, being the only academic research center in the state of Mississippi, has a unique capital of technology resources. The HBCUs have taken advantage of those resources as means to increase the value of their research programs in cancer biology, particularly PCa. As examples, many of the projects trainees have been involved utilized

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patient-derived materials and associated data, novel therapeutic models, agents or devices designed by UMMC researchers. As some students develop research at their HBCUs trough the academic year, they have taken knowledge and some of those resources to their schools.

Society beyond science and technology: The first ones impacted by our project have been our own trainees. They have become aware of the particularities of PCa for their own communities. As result of that (Appendix #17 Class of 2016 Students testimonials), they have grown fonder of biomedical cancer research and have embraced the scientific career as a professional option. The Mississippi PCa HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program is the first and only one in the state designed to provide undergraduate minority student training in PCa research at a research intensive environment. This Training Program has empowered HBCU undergraduates to pursue PCa careers, it has generated a pipeline for undergraduate research in PCa in Mississippi. Trainees of our program are becoming well-rounded professionals with training to thrive in PCa biomedical research, prevention, diagnosis and care. In the near future former mentees, as junior faculty will enlarge the ranks of minority researchers at TC, JSU or UMMC. They will impact their communities and will contribute to reduce PCa health disparities.

The UMMC community is very diverse and has interest in numerous disciplines of academic biomedical knowledge. Our program has generated a vibrant environment for interest in PCa research. This has been reflected in the overwhelmingly positive interest to our Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium. As noted by the attendance to this activity (Appendixes #4: Signup sheets) we continue attracting a diverse crowd. We have attracted not only researchers. To our activities, numerous clinicians, institutional and community leaders have attended. They have learned not only about basic and translational PCa cancer research with focus on disparities. They have also received a not complicated message on disease outcomes and behavioral intervention. Also community leaders and lay community members, attended to our activities this year. We are sure they will transmit our message to their communities.

5. CHANGES/PROBLEMS:There are no problems to report.

There are no other changes or problems to report.

6. PRODUCTS: List any products resulting from the project during the reporting period.

Presentations: Fourteen (14) meeting presentations in the poster or oral format included work related to internships during the current report period. Trainees presented their work in local (11) and national (3) meetings such as the 2015 14th Research Symposium on Students’ Summer Research Series at Tougaloo College (Appendixes #5 and #7); 2016 Mississippi College Undergraduate Research Symposium at Tougaloo College; 2016 Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium and 2016 Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium, both at UMMC; 2015 ABRCMS in Seattle, WA; 2016 Emerging Researchers National (ERN) Conference in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Washington, D.C. 

Website(s) or other Internet site(s):

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Course webpage: http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-key-statistics The webpage informs prospective applicants about eligibility requirements, Program components, Summer Research internship, housing assistance, application packet, contact information and news (Appendix#1; for the Course webpage screenshot).

We have generated two social media resources. (Appendix # 18 for social media resources screen shoots).

The Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/675020649225547/ The LinkedIn group: https://www.linkedin.com/grp/home?gid=6660607

Periodically, the UMMC-Cancer Institute Facebook is reporting on our Program: https://www.facebook.com/The-Cancer-Institute-at-UMMC-485738241532013/

These 4 resources provide powerful tools to obtain continuous tracking, promote engagement, interaction and professional networking, helping professional work’ dissemination; and supporting developing of professional presence. Additionally, the social media resources are used as tools to educate the public about trainees’ experience in the Program and as a way to increase public awareness of PCa research performed by minorities.

Educational aids or curricula: The development of the summer training course demanded an intensive curriculum. For details about the course program refer to Appendix #3.

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7. APPENDIXES

Appendix #1: UMMC WEBPAGE

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Appendix #2: Program flyer

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Appendix #3: Research Training Programs for 2016

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Appendix #4: 2016 Mini Symposium Sign in Sheets

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Appendix #5: 2016 Prostate Cancer Mini Symposium Poster and Agenda

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Appendix #6: 2016 Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium Pictures

Speakers: Timothy Turner, Ph.D., Ornella Amoah (Class of 2016), Christian Gomez, Ph.D. (Program Director), Courtney Mangum (Class of 2016), Diva Whalen, M.S. (Class of 2014), Jinghe Mao, Ph.D., and Keli Xu, Ph.D.

Roy Duhe, Ph.D. (UMMC-Cancer Institute Associate Director of Cancer Education and UMMC-HBCU PCa Training Program advisory board member), Christian Gomez, Ph.D., (Program Director), Speakers: Jinghe Mao, Ph.D., Courtney Mangum (Class of 2016), Ornella Amoah (Class of 2016) and Srinivasan Vijayakumar, M.D.

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Ornella Amoah (Class of 2016) presenting at 2016 Prostate Cancer Research Mini Symposium

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Appendix #7: Summer Undergraduate Students Program for 2016

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Summer Students Activities 2016

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SURE social activities program

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Appendix #8: Summer Research Symposium 2016

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Ornella Amoah poster presentation at Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium 2016

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Appendix #9 Final papers 2016

Identifying Progression of Aggressive Prostate Cancer Originating from Lunatic Fringe/Notch-Regulated

Mice Models Courtney Mangum1, Wen-Cheng Chung2, Keli Xu2, 3

1Biology Department, Tougaloo College, Tougaloo, MS; 2Cancer Institute, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS; 3Department of Neurobiology and Anatomical

Sciences, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS

Lunatic Fringe (Lfng), a Notch modulator, plays a tumor-suppressive role in the prostate. Loss of Lfng causes expansion of stem-like cells in the prostate basal epithelium and increased cell proliferation, which in turn results in prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN), abnormal morphological structures of epithelial cells. PIN may turn into an aggressive form of prostate cancer (PCa) via epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). EMT is characterized by an up-regulation of mesenchymal marker, Vimentin and down-regulation of epithelial marker, E-Cadherin. Using Probasin-Cre4, we have genetically engineered mice models (GEMMs) with Lfng deletion in combination with the deletion of tumor suppressive p53 or activation of oncogenic Kras. Prior experiments have shown accelerated PIN development in these models; therefore, we hypothesize that Lfng deletion in combination with p53 deletion or Kras activation will accelerate EMT development in GEMMs. After breeding and genotyping, we isolated and dissected prostate tissue from mice with experimental genotypes Pb-Cre4/Lfng/Kras and Pb-Cre4/Lfng/p53, and control genotypes Pb-Cre4/Lfng and Lfng/p53. The Western blot results showed an intense up-regulation of Vimentin and a modest up-regulation in the E-Cadherin expression in the Pb-Cre4/Lfng/p53 mice model, which may suggest EMT in addition to increased epithelial proliferation. However in opposition to our hypothesis, the Pb-Cre4/Lfng/Kras mice model resulted in up-regulated E-cadherin and down-regulated Vimentin expressions. This does not suggest EMT in this model. Due to the timeliness of mice breeding and prostate cancer progression, more studies will be needed to test for the mechanisms underlying PCa progression in the Lfng/Notch-regulated GEMMs. These preliminary results may show that different pathways are used during pathogenesis of aggressive forms of PCa.

Financial Support: Start-up funds from the UMMC Cancer Institute, The University of Mississippi Medical Center, HBCU Summer Research Training Program and the Gomez lab. Financial Support: PC131783 (HBCU-UMMC PCRP).

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Effects of Hypoxia on the Aggressiveness of PCa Ornella Amoah1, Ingrid Espinoza2,3, Hamza Patel4, Christian Gomez2,3,5

1Department of Chemistry, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS, 2Cancer Institute, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, 3Department of Biochemistry, Mississippi Medical

Center, Jackson, MS,4Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 5Department of Pathology and Radiation Oncology, Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS

Tumor hypoxia results from insufficient supply of oxygen to certain areas of the tissue and has been linked to malignant progression, metastasis, resistance to therapy, and poor clinical outcome of cancers in recent publications. In prostate tumor cells, evidence has been shown that the tissue cells thrive in moderately hypoxic conditions. Hypoxia may very well exist in both benign and malignant prostate cells. The expression of hypoxia-controlled proteins is associated with aggressiveness of prostate cancer. LNCaP cells overexpressed with HURP and their derived cell lines C4-2B, a more progressed form of PCa, were utilized in our experiments. Our objective is to establish a correlation between tumor hypoxia and aggressiveness of prostate cancer through the observation of intensity of hypoxia-associated molecules (HURP and HIF-1α) in prostate tumors and cancer cell lines. To test our hypothesis we used in-vitro cell lines and patient derived immunostaining. Two forms of hypoxia treatment were used during the course of this experiment, incubation at 37ºC in humidified air enriched 5% CO2 with 2% O2 content and cell exposure to Cobalt (II) Chloride. We used 8%-12% SDS-PAGE gels and Western blot analysis to detect the expression our proteins: hypoxia- inducible factor-1 (HIF-1α), to show the up-regulation of hypoxia in the tumor, hepatoma upregulated protein (HURP) as a predictive marker for aggressive PCa, Beta- actin and GAPDH as loading internal controls. We utilized LNCaP cells overexpressed with HURP and their derived cell lines C4-2B, more progressed forms of PCa. The Gomez lab has published evidence demonstration HURP as an independent biomarker for aggressive PCa, these findings allowed us to use HURP as a marker. The PCa patient tissue immunostaining was done in the lab and scored by a pathologist. 0 being low grade and 3 being high grade cancer. Thirty-four PCa patient malignant tumors were analyzed after immunostaining for HIF-1α and Gleason scores were obtained. We found a trend in our analysis which showed an increased HIF-1α staining, in many cases, had an increase in Gleason score as well. More patient data should be collected to illustration these results at higher values. The LNCaP and C4-2B treated with CoCl2 clearly showed a consistent up-regulation of HIF-1α, however we were not able to analysis for HURP in these lines. HURP and HIF-1α expression is up- regulated under hypoxia incubation as well.

Financial Support: PC131783 (HBCU-UMMC PCRP)

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Appendix #10: 2015 14th TC Research Day

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2015 14th TC Research Day Program ctd. (HCBU trainees highlighted in blue)

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2015 14th TC Research Day Program ctd. (HCBU trainees highlighted in blue)

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Appendix #11: Awards

Anthony Keyes poster presentation award at ABRCMS 2015

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Anthony Keyes acceptance letter for REU Summer Program in University of Illinois

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Anthony Keyes research experience in Chemistry Laboratory of Organic Polymers

(http://www.u‐bordeaux.com/Education/Exchange‐Programs/Incoming‐international‐students‐in‐

Bordeaux)

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Angel Garcia award at Tougaloo College Undergraduate Research Symposium

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Angel Garcia poster presentation award at NSD Research Symposium 2015

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Angel Garcia acceptance letter for iSEED Summer Research Experience program at the University at Buffalo

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Jamal Keyes acceptance letter to REU-CB at Rutgers

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Timera Brown acceptance letter to VINSE Summer REU Program at Vanderbilt University

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Appendix #12: Acceptance into Graduate Programs

Charles Phillips acceptance letter for UMMC Graduate School in Pathology

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Appendix #13: Acceptance into School of Medicine

Ansley Scott acceptance letter for UAMS College of Medicine.

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Appendix #14: Acceptance into Pharmacy Program

Tatyana Givens acceptance letter for Pharmacy Program

Dear Tatyana:

Congratulations on your acceptance into Mercer's Doctor of Pharmacy Class of 2020!

The first items required to secure your position in the Mercer Doctor of Pharmacy Program are responses to the Enrollment Information form (http://tinyurl.com/MUPharmD2020) and a non-refundable deposit of $500.00 to this office by February 3, 2016.

A second $250 deposit will be due on May 1, 2016. Seven hundred and twenty-five dollars of the deposit will be credited toward your first semester’s tuition while the remaining $25 will satisfy the University’s matriculation fee.

Additional details regarding your acceptance - including any conditions that the Admissions Committee has placed on your acceptance - are included in the hard copy acceptance letter that is being sent to you. A copy of the New Doctor of Pharmacy Student Enrollment Checklist that includes items that you will need to complete between now and when you enroll in August will be included in the letter packet.  

Please let us know if we can assist you with any part of the enrollment process. We look forward to your joining the Mercer community next August!

Best Regards, Jordana

Jordana S. Berry, MBA '04 Director of Admissions and Student Affairs Mercer University College of Pharmacy Direct: 678.547.6182 Fax: 678.547.6518 berry_js@mercer.edu

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Appendix #15: Scientific meetings attended

ABRCMS 2015 – Adesuwa Ekunwe

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Appendix #16: Prostate Cancer Knowledge Assessment

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Appendix #17: Testimonials students Class of 2016

Courtney Mangum courtmangum@gmail.com

Current status: Courtney Mangum, from Jackson, Mississippi, is a senior biology major at Tougaloo College. She is currently working on going to medical school upon graduation in 2017. She is proud to be the Vice-President of the National Pre-Alumni Council of the United Negro Fund. Mentor: Dr. Keli Xu Project title: Identifying Progression of Aggressive Prostate Cancer Originating from Lunatic Fringe/Notch-Regulated Mice Models Recent accomplishment: She is a recipient of University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Early Opportunity Program in Medicine, where she will be attending fall 2017. She was

just recently inducted as an Associate Member of the Brown Chapter of Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Society. She has presented at many research conferences including the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students, Emerging Researchers National Conference in STEM, and the 13th Tougaloo College Millsaps College Undergraduate Research Symposium. Personal statement: My recent studies have been some of the most valued experiences of my life. The pure essence and quality of the HBCU-UMMC internship is what was valued. Researchers play key role in medicine. Research engages intellectual curiosity and allows for creativity. Working in the field of prostate cancer has opened my mind to different risk factors of this disease, specifically old age and being of African American descent. The lack of preventative treatments baffles me and drove my interest even more. I refuse to be stagnant in my career; researching and becoming a part of the Mississippi Prostate Cancer HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program equipped me with a broader knowledge of cancer and biology on a molecular level. I am currently seeking a higher education so that I may make the lives of others better.

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Ornella Amoah ornellaamaoh@gmail.com

Current status: Ornella Amoah is a junior Chemistry major at The Jackson State University. This summer she was able to study hypoxia in relation to prostate cancer with proteins HURP and HIF-1alpha. Ornella is currently the NOBCChE JSU student chapter secretary and the ACS JSU chapter vice president. Mentor: Dr. Christian R. Gomez Recent Accomplishments: Awarded Dean's and President's List for the 2014-2016 school years. Nominated to the Alpha Lambda Delta and National Society of Collegiate Scholars 2015- present. Personal statement: This summer I was able to experience a great deal of laboratory techniques and protocol. I am grateful for being able to

participate in the HBCU Prostate Research Training Program because my time in lab and at the lectures educated me to the significance of cancer research. I learned of the disparities between African American men and other races in the US in the rates of new cases and deaths from prostate cancer. African men in the US are not only prone to aggressive forms of the cancer, but because of the lack of medical support in most of theirs communities, they are diagnosed late of are unable to access medical help. My experience this summer has reignited my love for medicine and science and assured me educational path.

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Appendix #18: Social media resources

Facebook group screenshot  

 

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LinkedIN group screenshot

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